Administration
Sachiko Isihara, Executive Director
Sachiko Isihara has served as the Executive Director of Suzuki School of Newton for over 20 years. She led SSN's three-year capital campaign to purchase and rehabilitate the historic Staples-Craft-Wiswall farmstead as SSN's permanent home in the heart of Waban.
Sachiko is a pianist by training, earning performance degrees from both the Juilliard School in New York and New England Conservatory in Boston. She is a graduate of the European Suzuki Association teacher training earning all five levels within three years, and became a Suzuki Association of the Americas Teacher Trainer in 2008.
Recently selected by the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women as one of their Commonwealth Heroines of 2020, she was recognized for her leadership and volunteerism for the betterment of her community. In 2018 and 2019, Sachiko received the Steinway Top Teacher award, and in 2018 also received the Milestone Award from the National Guild for Community Arts Education.
Sachiko is a founding member of the Newton Cultural Alliance, and was appointed by Mayor Fuller to be part of the committee for Community Design for Arts and Culture who developed the Create Newton cultural plan. Sachiko was recently elected to the Waban Improvement Society Board and looks forward to participating in enhancing Waban.
Christopher Thibdeau, Director of Operations
Christopher Thibdeau is a Boston based musician and educator and currently serves as the Operations Director for the Suzuki School of Newton, Massachusetts. Landing in Atlanta after graduate school, he was the Limited Term Assistant Professor of Music Education (Strings) at Kennesaw State University (KSU), the Music Director of the Metropolitan Youth Symphony Orchestras of Atlanta, the Assistant Conductor of the Georgia Tech Symphony Orchestra and the Conductor of the Atlanta Chamber Music Festival. Christopher has also previously served as the Interim Music Director of the Georgia Symphony Orchestra and Chorus and the Conductor & Artistic Manager of Orchestras for the Atlanta Music Project.
In Boston and the metropolitan area, Christopher has served as the Music Director of the Grotton Hill Music Sinfonia Youth Orchestra and as the Conductor and Master Teacher at Bridge Boston Charter School. He has appeared as a guest artist at the Brookline School of Music and as a guest instructor with the Boston Strings Academy and has collaborated with local musicians for performances throughout the community. Off the podium and out of the classroom, Christopher has presented workshops and educational concerts across the U.S. He was a panel speaker at the 2007 Connecticut State Music Teachers Association State Convention and has been featured as a guest speaker and moderator for the Eastman School of Music Polyphonic.org webinar series. In 2016 he was a guest teaching artist at the Afghanistan National Institute of Music’s (ANIM) Summer Residency program. During his time in Kabul, Christopher taught cello and conducting lessons, and had the opportunity to work with the first-ever female Afghan conductor, Negin Khpolwak. ANIM was founded in 2010 by Dr. Ahmad Sarmast to rebuild music education in Afghanistan. They are currently in exile, based in Lisbon, Portugal, until they can one day return to Kabul.
Mr. Thibdeau’s diverse career has led him to work in the Orchestra Management offices of Boston Symphony Orchestra as well as in finance in Post Office Square. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Cello Performance from the Eastman School of Music where he studied cello with Alan Harris and orchestral conducting with Neil Varon, and a Master of Music degree in Orchestral Conducting from the Cleveland Institute of Music where he studied with Carl Topilow.
Patty Drukker, Preschool Director
Patty Drukker brings more than four decades of experience in early education to her leadership role at the Suzuki Preschool of Newton. She was awarded a Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Education from Curry College, as well as an Associate’s Degree in Recreational Leadership from Mass Bay Community College. She also holds multiple certifications from the Massachusetts Department of Early Childhood and Care (LT-PS, LT I/T, Director I & II). Ms. Drukker joined Suzuki Newton in June 2024.
“While my career has been focused in the Boston area, my roots are in Newton. I was born and raised here, and it’s where I call home. I also come with a love of music, and enjoy popping into classrooms to sing and play my guitar for our students. I’m excited to be joining the Suzuki community and I look forward to getting to know our students and families in the coming months!”
Nicholas Ford, Marketing and Enrollment Coordinator
In addition to enhancing the Suzuki School of Newton experience as our marketing and enrollment coordinator, Nicholas Ford is a vocalist, composer, writer, and performer throughout the Boston area. Nicholas hails from Mississippi and studied composition and voice at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee and Mississippi College.
Nicholas’s compositions have been performed by the Nightingale Vocal Ensemble, members of the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, and students at the Boston Conservatory, Berklee, and Mississippi School of the Arts, and he especially enjoys performing his own music. He has recently joined our Musicianship faculty as well as helped to start our Suzuki Voice program at the Suzuki School of Newton.
Sidney O’Gorman, Registrar and Operations Coordinator
Sidney O'Gorman is a composer, tenor vocalist, music educator, and arts administrator. He writes music that is forged from a collaborative process with his performers and prioritizes a clear structure and sound world. His work has been described as music of "vulnerability" and of "clarity and sharpness of [...] intention" in his use of narrative as an integral tool for the construction of material and form. He received his master's degree in Music Composition from the Boston Conservatory at Berklee and received his bachelor's degree in Music Theory and Composition from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami.
His dedication to the success of arts administrations comes from his work as a Graduate Assistant at the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, where he oversaw the course scheduling for undergraduate students and served as a liaison to a number of resident artists. Among his other administrative positions is also his Assistant and Team Supervisor role at Place Planning as well as his presidency of the Student Chapter of the Society of Composers Inc at the University of Miami for which he facilitated meetings, planned concerts, and contracted resident ensembles.
As a composer, Sidney has experience writing for a diverse number of projects including scores for film, chamber ensembles, wind ensemble, electronic music, and choir. His notable projects include his master's thesis piece, Salvation in a Sun-Shower, written for four tenors and string quartet as well as Keep the lid on for solo percussion. He continues to write music with his close friends and collaborators and hopes to further focus on teaching.
Barrie Wheeler, President
Mark Bauer, Vice President
David Gaylin, Treasurer
Christina Daly, Clerk
Kasey Calebaugh, Faculty Rep
Martha Fishman, Past President
Board of Directors 2024-2025
Anitha Gopalan, Past President
Kathleen Kouril Grieser
Karen Lourence
Chaya Murthy
Jane Starkman
David Starmer
Barry Ticho
Wei Tong, Compliance Officer
Sachiko Isihara, Ex-Officio
Patty Drukker, Ex-Officio